Shakespeare Is Overrated
by mantheharpies
Summary: Casper High is holding a play. Not just any play, an original play on Danny Phantom. Every student in one of Lancer's class is required to have some sort of part in it. When it becomes a hit, Danny is suddenly thrusted into a stardom he's not ready for. DISCONTINUED.
1. Chapter 1

"Settle down now children, settle down. I know it's almost spring break, but that's still no excuse to slack off"

Lancer used waved his hands in an up and down gesture, trying to get the chattering students to be quiet. It took a good five minutes, but they all hushed up eventually. Lancer was surprised to see Danny Fenton in his seat as the bell rang, looking up at him expectantly.

"Daniel Fenton?"

He asked just to make sure he wasn't hallucinating. The boy only showed up for the first fifteen minutes of class most days, and others he just didn't show up at all.

"Yes, Mr. Lancer?"

Fenton wasn't slouching, like he did on most days. In fact, he was sitting upright, his hands intertwined and set nicely on the desk as he looked up at Lancer with brighter eyes than usual. Lancer wasn't buying it.

"Detention, Mr. Fenton," he said calmy.

"Wh-Bu-I didn't do anything wrong!" stammered Danny, having been in a good mood before class. Not a single ghost had bothered him all day! He had actually gotten time to sleep and get to class on time. He had assumed as well that he'd be spared a detention. Apparently not.

"Precisely! I don't know what kind of shenanigans you're planning, Mr. Fenton, but I won't let you pull the wool over my eyes!"

"That's so-you're so-Ugh, fine, whatever!"

Danny dropped his hands and put his head down in defeat. Lancer's smirk faltered for a second, but then he ignored the guilty feeling he got in his stomach and decided this was normal behavior for the boy. Walking back to the white board, he cleared his throat and began his speech.

"Ladies and Gentlemen of Casper High, as you all are probably aware, with the coming of Spring comes the Annual Casper High Original Theatrical Performance. Why does this concern you? Well, freshmen, every year it's my classes that are put in charge of the play!"

The class groaned almost in harmony, and set their heads down much like Danny had done before them.

"Oh, come now, children! I'm sure you'll enjoy it as much as I do," he said with a bright smile.

Lancer start fumbling with papers on his desk, before he finally found what he was looking for and passed it out to the rows.

"Everything you'll need to know is on this sheet of paper. Read it over, and if you still have any questions then feel free to ask me either before or after school. I won't be here during lunch"

The bell rang, signaling the end of first period and everyone exited Lancer's class sluggishly. Talk of the oncoming play was on everyone's mouth, some of it good and some of it bad.

* * *

"I can't believe that jerk!" growled Danny, shutting-or more like slamming his locker. Sam waited on the other side, looking at him sympathetically.

"Chill, Danny. You can't really blame him. I mean what would you think if Vlad suddenly called a truce and stopped trying to kill your dad and marry your mom?"

"Funny thing is, he has," he chuckled softly, remembering what had come out of that.

"Mhmmm, and where did that get him?" she coaxed in a motherly tone.

"In the hospital... with a broken rib, and partially lacerated ear."

"Is that all?" Sam raised her eyebrows in surprise. She grabbed her books from Danny and began walking to their second period class.

"Not exactly. Broken jaw, dislocated knee, third degree burn on his butt, and a bald spot. That's all I can remember, anyway. He also wasted thousands of dollars re-building his house and getting his cat back from the Humane Society."

"Humane Society... I'm not even going to ask. Point is, what's one detention going to do?"

"I guess you're right. Lancer will always pick on me no matter what I do. Might as well deal with it," he sighed.

"That's the spirit!" she said brightly "Or, uhm, not-spirit. Technically, I guess."

"Thanks, Sam. Now mind telling me what happened during first period? I kind of dosed off."

Sam groaned and plopped down on her desk in second period. She fished through her messy binder, trying to find the flyer Lancer had passed out.

"Here. I think this'll explain better than I can."

She passed the flyer to Danny, and he began reading it just as the bell rang.

_**Annual Casper High Original Play**_

_Shakespeare? Over-rated. Molier? Oh please! Neil Simon? Bleh!_

_It's time for a different type of play. A play written by you, for you, and performed by you!_

_This year's topic: Danny Phantom_

_Danny slammed his head on the table a few times before the teacher had to stop teaching to ask if he needed to go to the nurse, to which he replied to with a simple 'No', and resumed reading._

_MR. LANCER'S FIRST PERIOD: Actors; you are in charge of bringing the play to life! Your role will be randomly chosen once the play is done being written. You cannot swamp, trade, quit, or ask for exchanges. All roles are final._

_MR. LANCER'S SECOND PERIOD: Play Writers: You are in charge of the story! Each person will create their own, original, plot line following this year's topic. Your teacher will then review them all, and pick the best. If your play is chosen, you can just sit back in the audience and watch your masterpiece unfold. The remaining students will be in charge of writing the script. The script must be reviewed by your teacher before being made final._

_MR. LANCER'S THIRD PERIOD: Prop and Costume: What's a play without the costumes and props? The stage and actors are your canvas, go wild! Not too wild, though. Please stay inside the school's dress code regulations. If something is absaloutely critical, you may discuss it with your teacher and work something out between the two of you._

_MR. LANCER'S FOURTH PERIOD: Technical Supoort: Anything electronic is up to you guys. Posters, Special Effects, Lights, etc. Try to keep the special effects realistic. There most likely won't be any wild car chases in your play. Other than that, you're free to do whatever you want. Not that great with computers, but have a wicked idea you want in the play? Take it up with Mrs. Bennington (room 720) and she'll be more than happy to help you out._

_Good Luck, have a total of two weeks to get everything running!_

_Make this a play your fellow classmates won't soon forget._

_(Chances are a talent scout will be visiting the school soon. If you do spectacular, he might even consider putting the play on the big screen- with your acting and script!)_

"He better not give out any homework this entire two weeks if he expects us to actually do good," he said, handing the flyer back to Sam.

"Don't bet on it, not for first period, anyway."

"First period? Aren't they the... awh crap, actors," he groaned, recalling the mimimum amount of effort first period had to put in. They would show up, say a few lines, and go home. Danny wasn't the best actor, but months of pretending he was a defenseless freshmen had paid off.

"Mhmm," she replied with a frown "Tucker is the only one getting the good end of the deal. He's in fourth period, shouldn't take him more than 3 or 4 days. I bet everything will be amazing, too."

"Only if he wants it to be, though. He's smart, just lazy."

"You know him too well, Danny. Valerie is in second period, you don't think she'd... do you?"

"I do. Let's just hope Lancer hates whatever idea she throws at him."

"Let's hope so. Knowing your luck though, we'd be lucky if he chooses a play that doesn't end with you being tortured, married off, or violated"

He raised an eyebrow at her questioningly and she quickly corrected herself.

"Your alter-ego, in the play. Or who ever is going to be playing you... Don't give me that look, you know what I mean!"

Danny laughed at Sam's temper, and was about to reply when the bell rang. Grabbing his stuff, he said bye and walked to his third period class. He wouldn't have anymore classes with his friends until after lunch, so he went through the rest of the day thinking about all the 102 ways this play was going to end badly.


	2. Chapter 2

"What makes you so sure this will work? He's always trying so hard to stay out of the limelight."

"He will succumb, I assure you. It's human nature. The want for love and admiration is universal. All I'll do is unleash that want and shower him with praise. He'll be practically blinded by it, then Amity will be yours. As long as you hold up your end of the deal, you have no need to worry."

"And if I don't?"

"I am not someone you'd wish to cross, dear."

"You're just a thespian."

* * *

Paulina frowned, looking down at the piece of paper Lancer had handed out in first period. She _really _wanted to star in the play and write it as well. She'd be the lead princess who got kidnapped by some evil ghost, and then got saved by Phantom. Then he'd fall in love with her and it'd be a dream come true!

_Let's not forget how great of an actor I am_, she mused in her mind.

"What's that?"

Star peered over Paulina's shoulder, trying to see what had the Latina looking so upset. Personally, she didn't really care. But if Paulina was upset, chances were she'd be a bit more cranky than she usually is. Last time that happened, she made Star walk around in 8'inch heels the entire school day just to break them in for her.

"Oh, nothing. Just some stupid play thing Lancer wants us to do. I don't want some boring nerd to come up with some totally boring plot though! Obviously, _I _should be in charge of that."

"I have an idea! You could just give someone in second period your amazing ideas and they could give them to Lancer for you. That way you can still act in the play!"

"Nah, I have a better idea..."

Star huffed and dropped her shoulders, but beckoned for Paulina to go on anyway.

"I'll just get some nerd to present my idea, that way I can act in the play too!"

"That's exactly what I..."

Paulina gave her the if-you-cherish-your-social-status-you'd-shut-up glare. Star got the hint and hushed up, opting for a different approach.

"I mean, you're so smart Paulina!"

Paulina flipped her hair and started walking down the hall again. Star quickly shut her locker and jogged to keep up with her.

"Where are you going, Paulina? Fifth period is _that _way," she pointed towards the opposite direction, but Paulina didn't even glance that way.

"I know, puta! Do you think I don't know where my own class is? We're going to pay Fenton a little visit."

"Gross," muttered Star, deciding to stay quiet the rest of the way there.

* * *

"You okay, Val?"

Valerie was hunched over her desk, writing vigorously. Her hair covered her face and the paper, but the way her hand was moving, you'd imagine she was biting her lip with such a serious expression it'd be comical.

"Yeah, I just got kind of carried away"

"You looked like you were about to snap the desk in half with the way you were writing. Did you forget another homework assignment?" asked Tucker, raising his head from his PDA for a moment to join the conversation.

"For your information, I _did _my homework," she narrowed her eyes dangerously at him. She hated it when people talked to her as if she was a slacker. Straight A's and honors marks didn't come easy, especially when you have ghost hunting on the side lines. "I was just writing for Lancer's play."

A hand reached out and grabbed the piece of paper from her desk. She gasped, turning around to glare at her teacher. Class hadn't even started yet!

"You're supposed to be working on your flashcards until the bell rings and class starts. All three of you, back to work."

She crumpled the piece of paper and threw it away, walking back down the isles to presumably see what everyone else was up to.

Valerie wanted to cry. She'd never put so much emotion into a piece of writing! Mostly, it was about her own encounters with Phantom. About how evil, unmercifully, treacherous, and cowardly he was. If her play got accepted by Lancer, and then if they met the talent scout's expectations... Well, the rest of the world that didn't know about Amity would hopefully accept the fact that Danny Phantom was a menace and ban together to get rid of him. The ones who already knew about him and thought he was good would realize how wrong they are. Phantom wouldn't stand a match, and be driven back into the Ghost Zone where he belongs.

... Okay, maybe that's wistfully thinking, but Valerie stood by the fact that getting her play out there _would _help in destroying Phantom one way or another.

"Ugh... I was almost done with it too. She's so unnecessarily strict."

"You still have two weeks to do it, not a big deal," Danny shrugged.

"_You _have two weeks. Our plot lines are due in two days," she sighed.

"Still no biggie," said Tucker "I'll even help you with it"

"No! I mean, I don't want to distract you when you have your own thing you should be focusing on. I also kind of want it to be a surprise for everyone," she smiled at him apologetically, but he just shrugged it off and went back to his PDA game.

"That great, huh?" grimaced Danny.

"Mm-hmm," she answered, not picking up his tone.

Someone plopped down on the chair beside Danny, and he felt someone tap him gently on the arm. He turned around to see Paulina sitting down on the seat next to his, her bag still on her shoulder. Star was standing next to her, a bored expression on her face as she looked around the classroom.

"Hey, Danny," she batted her eyelashes, a biological sign of female attraction. Danny would have fell for it a few months ago, too. He considered himself immune now.

"'Sup, Paulina?" he asked nonchalantly, treating the girl like she was just any other person. She didn't show it outwardly, but he knew she hated it. Call it a hunch.

"Can you meet me by my locker after school? I don't want to have any of these, uhm, _losers _around," she pointed a look towards Tucker and Valerie "and besides, I don't want to be late to class. See you around, and don't make me wait!"

She didn't give him time to answer as she hurried out the room.

"You're not actually going to show up, are you, dude?" asked Tucker once Paulina was gone, his eyes still glued on the game.

"I might, but just to see what she wants. After that, I'm out of the place."

"I'm guessing you don't want Sam to know?"

"Yeah, I still have my detention too. Then I have to get home and do homework so I can get my grades up, or else my parents might actually go through with their threat of making Vl-" he stopped himself when he remembered Valerie was sitting right next to him "of making _him _my tutor. We'll just hang out next week."

"Awh man, this totally sucks. And to think I stocked up on popcorn for no reason. Whatever, more for me and Sam."

"So it's official? You two love birds are going out?" asked Valerie suddenly because of Tucker's earlier comment of 'not wanting Sam to know'.

"Uh, no. She just shares an extreme hate for Paulina."

"Don't blame her," said Valerie, turning back to her work.

* * *

Danny waited awkwardly by where he assumed Paulina's locker was. Whenever he had passed by, he'd always see the Phantom adorned interior of it so it _had _to be hers. It felt a little awkward, being hated and adored by the girl at once. Of course, she didn't knew he was Phantom, but it was still weird for him. Who gets crushes on ghosts anyway?

_And she calls **me **weird_, he mused.

He'd been waiting for ten minutes now, and still no sign of Paulina or her cronies. He mentally gave her five minutes to show up before he left for detention. If he was late, Lancer would probably give him an extra hour. He hoped whatever Paulina had to say was good.

He saw her finally round the corner, taking her time while she texted one of her friends.

"Paulina, could you hurry up, please?" he asked, growing impatient.

"You're lucky I even showed up,_ Fenton_," she spat out the last part as if it were an insult.

"Last time I checked, _you _asked me to be here, _Hernandez_," he retaliated.

"Right, whatever." She reached into her purse and pulled out a crumpled peace of paper.

"Give that to Lancer for me, will you? I don't know how this whole thing works but just make sure he picks my play."

"I'm in first period, Paulina. You have it with me, remember?"

He rubbed the bridge of his nose in frustration. Really, he had waited for this?

"Do I? Oh whatever, you're so useless. Hey, what do you think you're doing?"

Danny ignored Paulina's protests and uncrumpled the piece of paper. He had barely read the first sentence before he couldn't contain the laughter that was bubbling in his stomach.

"It was a dark and stormy night in a land far, far away? Really, Paulina?" he gasped. Struggling to read the paper and hold it over his head at the same time. Her writing had dots instead of hearts, and a curly lines **everywhere**! It looked like some kind of font you'd use on a Barbie doll's box. That, coupled with the fact that he was convulsing with laughter made it very hard for him to stay focussed.

She growled, jumping up and down in an attempt to reach the paper that he was holding over his head. She had never noticed how tall he was.

"Give it back, puto!"

"The princess of Amity Park sat on her thrown watching while the bravest men fought for her hand in marriage!"

He struggled to not fall on the ground from his hysterical chuckling. Internally, he was grateful Paulina wasn't in second period. Propelling herself on the ground and aiming for the piece of paper in his hand, she fell a little short and ended up grasping one of his forearms. Instead of bringing him down with her weight like she had expected to happen though, she just dangled there five inches off the ground for a few minutes before she came to her senses and let go. Since _when _has Danny been strong?

"Pinche culo!"

She stopped jumping and crossed her arms, slamming her foot down on Danny's.

"You're ruining my pedicure, ass."

His face turned sour and he used his opposite hand to reach down and grab his throbbing foot, hopping on one leg while he howled in pain.

"Ow, Paulina. Where did you learn to _stomp _like that?"

Today was just full of surprises, wasn't it?

"I'm a cheerleader, duh. Now stop making fun of me and give me back my paper," her lip started trembling like she was going to start crying at any moment, and she gave him her best puppy dog eyes.

"Awh, alright, here you go," he said as if he were talking to a pet that had been deprived a treat.

He lowered his hand, placing the piece of paper in Paulina's palm. Just as she was going to close her hand, though, he pulled back quickly and fixed her with a smug smile.

"I'm late for detention, and it's kind of all your fault. Do you know what being stuck in detention with Lancer, of all people, for two hours is like? Of course you don't. So I'm taking this with me as something to keep me sane. Thanks for the cheap laugh, Paulina, later."

He stuffed the piece of paper in his pocket and walked away from her. Glaring at his retreading form, she took out her phone to rant to Star about what had just happened. Since _when_ had Fenton been so rebellious towards her?

Of course she wasn't going to let him get away with it, what kind of Queen Bee would she be then?

'_star, move fenton to numb 2 on the loser hit list'_

She closed her phone, a mischievous smirk forming on her face. Oh, Fenton was gonna get it good.

**Things are moving reallllly slowly. Dumb fillers. I still don't know how Paulina is going to get her revenge or who is going to get their play chosen, oops. Opinions and Reviews are very appreciated.**


	3. Chapter 3

"Why are we doing this again?" asked Dash, propping his feet up on Paulina's coffee table.

Paulina had ordered an emergency meeting about Fenton. Fenton! Was Dash the only one who found that ridiculous? The only time they ever called for emergency meetings was when someone was posing a threat to their popularity, which he doubted Fenton did. He was as harmless as a rollie pollie.

"_Because _he laughed at my play idea!"

"So?" questioned Kwan "We agreed that the only time we'd call an emergency meeting was when someone was possibly jeopardizing our popularity! Destroying nerds for being a little rebellious is like hurting puppies for barking too much. It's just not right."

Really, Kwan was the nicer one of the group. The only time he picked on those lower on the Social Food Chain was when he absaloutely had to in order to maintain his social status. Unlike the others, he felt bad for them.

"You guys, just listen to me," she pleaded. She knew she wouldn't be able to bring down Fenton without her help, so she needed them to see this from her point of view.

"It starts with not listening to us, and talking back. Then they think they can just get rid of us by telling teachers. When that doesn't work, they try getting in with us! Trying out for football, trying out for cheerleading, trying and failing miserably to update their wordrobe... I mean, imagine having Foley and Fenton on your team, Dash!"

Dash cringed, but didn't say anything.

"And Star, Imagine us having to shop with Linda! Or that Gothgirl!"

Star fiddled with her fingers, just the thought of buying combat boots alone making her want to puke.

"But... they can try, it doesn't mean they'll succeed, right? I mean, Fenton wouldn't be able to get on the football team even if he tried."

Paulina sighed, shaking her head.

"You're right. Most are too weak and ugly and awkward to ever dream about it! But like, today, I found out that Fenton is really weirdly strong! You wouldn't think it by looking at him, but he carried me with one arm. I don't even think Dash can do that-"

Dash huffed, crossing his arms. He mumbled something that no one else could hear, but it sounded like 'I so totally can.'

"If he decided to try out for sports he'd have a fair chance of making it. He's not the best runner, but still. And if that's just Fenton, who knows what the others are hiding from us? We need to make an example of him. You don't not disrespect the A-List."

"Wait wait, so you want us to befriend the loser because he laughed at you? Where's the logic in that?" asked Star, cocking her head to the side.

"Yeah," agreed Dash "If it really pissed you off so much me and Dash will be more than happy to give him a better than usual beating. We don't have to completely _destroy_ him."

Kwan rammed his fist into the palm of his other hand, emphasizing Dash's point. Paulina screamed in frustration and threw a pillow at Kwan.

"We're going to crush him like we did to that Valerie chick, you guys. Only difference is, she was actually kinda cool before she got all poor and stuff. Whatever, just hang out with him for a few weeks, that's all I'm asking! Make him popular, let him try out for football, whatever! When we're done with him, even his loser friends will be embarrassed to be seen with him."

She slapped her hands together and gave her friends her best puppy dog pout. They looked at her awkwardly, then at eachother, and then back at her before nodding slowly. She squeeled in delight and lunged at them in a fierce hug.

-.-.-

"We can't attack the whelp, not even a little?"

Skulker scowled and looked down at the floor in despair. The Ghosts who regularly haunted Amity sat on a huge rock, their "meet up" spot. In actuality, it was only the biggest rock they could find within the vicinity.

Ember flew above them with an unknown ghost. He was relatively silent while Ember did all the talking.

"Not even a little," she answered.

The ghosts groaned at the same time in that creepy, echo-y ghost way. They didn't mean for it to come out like that, it just did.

"Why should we listen to _you_, how do we know you're not just saving him for yourself?" asked Johnny 13, looking around at the other ghosts for approval. They nodded and shouted in agreement.

"By the time Thespian is done with him, the entirety of Amity will be ours!" she stated proudly, nudging the ghost beside her.

The crowd below her chatter in excitement, liking how that sounded.

"The dipstick will be no match for us, when he least expects it is when we'll strike! Let him enjoy his life for now!"

The crowd now taken over by Ember's persuasive tone of voice began fist pumping the air. For years, they had waited for someone to come and lead them out into the human world. It didn't seem like a rock star and her scrawny, mystery ghost friends would be the ones to do that. Looks could be deceiving sometimes though.

"Every ghost in the Ghost Zone will join forces. We will overrun the human world while Phantom is bussy being _famous_," she spat the last part and the ghosts took to the air, howling in excitement. "No longer will be confined to our prison in the Ghost Zone, where not even a single plant flourishes. Where the only source of light is our glowing bodies and where not a single laugh of joy has been heard in centuries. The human realm on the other hand flourishes with life and joy! Let me ask you, is that fair?"

The crowd began chanting her name, their ghostly energies sky rocketing as they anticipated the future. Ember's eyes rolled to the back of her head as she took in the praise, he fiery up-do twisting with each chant.

With on last chorus of howls, the ghosts departed in all different directions. Some heading to their lairs, others letting out pent up energy from all that excitement. Ember was left alone with the mystery ghost, floating on the huge slab of rock. In the midst of the silence, she smiled smuggly to herself. She had just started the next revolution.

-.-.-

Danny smiled to himself as he walked to school with the two best friends anyone could ever ask for. No rush, no sleep deprivation, no ghosts. He knew he should be worried, but he was trying to soak it all up before they started again. The ghouls were probably just taking a small break.

Sometimes he'd hang out in the hallways after the bell rang finishing up homework he neglected the night before. That was one of the perks of being constantly late. He'd get a detention whether he was on time or late, so he'd might as well soak up the freedom in some sense.

They reared the corner that led to the school in a comfortable sort of silence. The kind that you and only your best friends can share, you know? Where no one is worrying about what to say because just the presence of each other is enough to satisfy you? Yeah, that kind of silence.

As they opened the pair of double doors that led to the inside of the school, Danny spotted Dash walking the opposite way. He cringed and closed his eyes, preparing for his morning beat-down. Tucker even put a hand on his shoulder in the 'Sorry, bro' kind of way. Instead, it never came. When he cracked one of his eyes open, Dash turned to him and smiled. Then waved. Danny shuddered.

"Did I just imagine that?"

"Unless we're both going schizo, I don't think so," answered Tucker, his head trailing the spot Dash had just been as they continued down the hall.

Danny glanced at his two friends with a raised eyebrow before he broke out into a crazy smile.

"This day just keeps getting better and better!"

"You know what would be really funny in an ironic sort of way?" piped up Sam suddenly.

"Hmm?" asked Danny, too happy to really care.

"If you were picked to play Phantom," she wry smile formed on her face as she took in Danny's reaction. His shoulders slumped and he glared at Sam.

"You always have to ruin things for me, don't you?"

"Awh, you know it's my job."

Danny laughed and nudged Sam in a friendly way. Tucker rolled his eyes and departed ways with his buddies to go to his first period as they arrived at Lancer's door. When Danny and Sam stepped inside, earlier than most people, what they saw instantly made them wish Skulker would come crashing through the walls demanding their attention.

The wall of the classroom were taped with green wallpaper, and costumes hung on coat racks in one corner of the room. Cardboard blobs of standard green ghosts hung on wires all over one side of the room. Lancer sat at his desk, shuffling through papers.

"What _is _this?" asked Sam. She was still gaping around at the room with her mouth slightly ajar. She was having trouble taking it all in.

"Like it?" asked Lancer, standing up from his desk.

"Like it? What _is _it?" Danny gasped out Sam's earlier question. They were still the only two in the room since the starting bell wasn't going to ring for another three minutes.

"Well," began Lancer, trying to decide how to word his sentence "As you are probably aware, your period will have nothing to do for a good few weeks until the plot and script has been finished. I haven't bothered with any lesson plans, since most of my time will be occupied with t he play. So, i've decided to give you guys a little practice since i'm positive you have no proffesional experience with the art of theater."

"So... what does that mean?" asked Danny. He was sort of lost with where Lancer was going with this.

"I'll explain in better detail when the entire class is present, since I don't want to repeat myself. In the mean time, leave me to my work."

Danny turned and shrugged to Sam, and walked over to the rack of clothes. Sam followed promptly after. There were a pair of yellow rain boots and a matching pair of cleaning gloves. An aluminum chest plate, a plastic tricycle that was spray painted black (badly, at that). Among other things there was a blue wig that had multiple bald spots and was tied up in a messy pony tail and vampire fangs.

"What is all this stuff supposed to be?" asked Sam, not bothering to turn around and look at Lancer as he typed vigorously into his computer.

"Oh, just props I managed to conjure up. They're modeled after ghosts I've actually seen around Amity, you know. I've given each and every single one I've recognized a name. I bet I could even be as good of a ghost hunter as your parents, if I wanted to, Daniel..." he trailed off when he realized the two weren't listening to him.

Danny had put on the aluminum shield and was holding the water gun as he stomped around the room.

"Hey hey, Sam, who am I?"

Sam giggled and deepened her voice.

"I will hang your pelt at the foot of my bed! Moo hoo hoo!"

"What kind of an evil laugh was that?"

"Shut up, Danny."

Lancer shook his head and mouthed the word 'love birds' before turning back to his work. The bell rang and the two friends walked over to their desks. Students startled shuffling in one by one until each and every seat was full.

"Alright, students. Today we're going to have a few practice skits. First we're going to try improvisation. That doesn't mean you're going to say whatever comes off the top of your head, so no funny business," he pointed a look toward's a few of the class clown before continueing.

"I have a list of the characters on the board. You'll be drawing from a hat. I have a couple of props set up here and there that you'll be able to use to your advantage. Tomorrow, we'll have a script you'll need to practice. It's short, so don't worry your tiny little brains. It's just to help you with your memory. Everyone got the gist of things?"

The class groaned and nodded as Lancer began walking down the isles with the hat. When it came Danny's turn, his thoughts drifted back to what Sam had said earlier that day. Of course, this wasn't the real thing. It was still kind of nerve wrecking. When he opened the piece of paper, it read

_Count Ghoulestien aka Vampire ghost with pointy hair_

Danny smirked, figuring out that Lancer was probably referring to Vlad. He heard someone behind him scream "Whoohoo, I got Danny Phantom!". It sounded like Dash. Danny groaned and slammed his head against the table as Lancer announced for everyone with a part to move up to the front of the classroom.

Danny, Dash, Kwan, and Sam shuffled up to the front of the classroom.

"Group 1," Lancer read. "Daniel as Count Ghoulenstein. Dash as Danny phantom. Kwan as damsel in distress, and Sam as innocent pedestrian. Let the imagination begin."

Dash wore the yellow rain boots and cleaning gloves. Danny had put on a cape and fangs. Kwan reluctantly put on a pink tiara and Sam simply refused the props.

Dash awkwardly cleared his throat.

"Count Ghoulestein, unhand that maiden at once!"

"N-Never Phantom!"

"Then face my wrath!"

Dash tackled Danny to the floor and started pinning his arms behind his back.

"Oh the horror!" feigned Kwan in an awkwardly high voice.

Sam stood in the corner with her arms crossed. She had an annoyed look on her face as she looked down on Danny and Dash wrestling on the floor.

"Cut! Cut!" Lancer yelled through the howling and laughter of the class.

"You can't just jump into action like that, build up suspense and a plot. Oh and Sam, please try and get involved. Okay, again."

"Count Ghoulestein, unhand that maiden at once after you tell me your plot!"

"Join me, Phantom!"

"Go on..." beckoned Dash, breaking out of character. "What else?"

"No that was it."

"Seriously?"

"Yeah."

"Cut! You can't break out of character in the middle of things like that! Again!"

Lancer sighed and rubbed the bridge of his nose.

This time, Kwan took the initiative after Dash and Danny just looked around awkwardly.

"Save me, Phantom!" he put a hand to his forehead dramatically "Even though I could totally save myself because I'm totally manly and part of the football team, save me!"

Sam yawned and walked over to Kwan. She knocked the crown off his head and pushed him onto the floor.

"Twist in plot," she said monotonously "Damsel has been killed by innocent pedestrian."

"Cut!"

Lancer was about to go on a rant about what she did wrong, but before he could the bell rang and everyone shuffled out of class as soon as possible.

Lancer was going to have a lot of work ahead of him.

**I'm sorry about all the fillers. I could just skip ahead and go right to the play, but it's all up to you guys. The Paulina thing is mostly just something to write about in the mean time (it's kind of like two stories in one). The ghosts do actually have a part in plot though, so bare with me. The next chapter will be the same day as this one but during lunch, but I'm not telling you what happens. After that is around where the play's plot gets chosen. I think you should know that's there's no pairing in this fic, I just do what I have to do to make it interesting and pairings don't really concern me.**

**Also, when the play comes, would you rather read about and have a chapter dedicated to it or rather read about how it went and if it was 'good' or 'bad' or whatever? Let me know what you think and ideas and criticism are always welcome.**


	4. Chapter 4

**Ahh, I'm really sorry about the late update! It would've been sooner, but I just couldn't seem to finish this chapter. I rewrote and revised it at least twenty times, and I STILL don't like how it turned out. I figured it had to be done though, since I made you guys wait long enough. Here's a recap, in case you don't remember what happened last chapter.**

Previously: There's something brewing in the Ghost Zone. Ember believes she and the other ghosts can take over Amity with this new mystery ghost, but asks them to be patient as it will take time. All the while, Paulina and her cronies have devised a way to bring Danny down the same way they did Valerie. In class, Lancer asked some students to act out practice improvisation skits, where hilarity ensued. Although, Lancer isn't all that amused with his student's lack of acting ability.

* * *

"I can't believe I agreed to this."

Star glanced around the corner that led to a long hallway. The hallway was full of lockers on both sides and led to a dead end with a storage closet in the very back. Everyone else was at lunch, and she was stuck waiting here for Fenton to show up. Great.

See, Paulina had confided in her to come up with a plan. The plan, although simple, was quite genius. In her opinion, anyway. No one expected her to come up with a decent way to get into Fenton's little circle of friends, or at least have him accept the A-List. That's why she had practically jumped at the chance to prove herself. When you're a girl who spends all her free time color coordinating outfits and ruining other A-listers like it's a game of chess, coming up with a simple scheme isn't so hard. She really didn't want to stand here until Fenton decided to show himself though.

The first part of the plan required her to catch him when he was alone. Which, unfortunately, was only when he would ask to use the restroom. Fortunately, he did that multiple times a day. She'd asked to be excused as well and followed behind him far away enough to not get caught. Instead of going to the restroom, though, he'd stop at a closet and then he'd never come out. She had completely ditched one of her classes for him for thirty minutes, and then she had to leave to go to her next class.

This was the third time he had gone in there today. She had failed to see him come out every single time. She was about to give up hope on the plan and go back to see Paulina when a sound came from the closet like a _bang_, then a _crash _and a _skeet_ followed by a flash of light and Fenton came stumbling out all sweaty and gross looking. His hair was sticking up at weird angles and his clothes were sticking to him like they were metal and he was a magnet. There was a scrape across his cheek that was bleeding and a bruise around his wrist.

Deciding to ignore his gross physical stage, Star ruffled her own hair and pinched herself. Hard. When that didn't work, she started thinking about what Paulina was forcing her to do and the water works started.

Stumbling out from behind the corner, she almost bumped into him. He jumped and looked around with wide eyes at the girl that was now beside him.

"S-Star! Buh-How long have you bee-!"

"No time for explanation, Fenton! There's a ghost out in the football field and I barely got away with my life! Come quick!"

She grabbed his wrist-the one that wasn't bruising, and ushered him around maze of hallways.

"W-Why do you think I could help?"

"Because your parents are ghost hunters, aren't they?"

She made sure her voice sounded panicked and desperate. Rounding another corner, passing through a pair of double doors, down another hall and another corner, and she was officially out of breath.

"O-Out there," she placed her hands on her knees and pointed towards the door they were now in front of.

Fenton gulped and looked at her with an unsure expression, eyeing the door and Star like he wasn't sure which to choose.

"Just because my parents are ghost hunters-"

"Go!"

She pushed him out of the doors and into the blinding sunlight. He placed a hand over his forehead to shield his eyes as he scanned the field.

"There's nothing here, Star."

"Really?" she asked, feigning surprise. Pulling him back into the poorly lit hallway, she shrugged her shoulders and pouted.

"Oh well, maybe Phantom got him."

"Uh... yeah, probably," Danny wasn't sure if the girl was telling the truth, because the only ghost to bother him in that month was Vlad. If there was something out there anyway, he would've known because of his ghost sense. He didn't see why she would need a reason to lie about that though, so he shrugged it off.

"By the way, what do you do in those closets, wrestle with cleaning supplies or something? You look like you just came back from a fight, there's blood on your cheek."

"Oh," he rubbed the back of his neck in embarrassment, he hadn't thought she'd seen him barge out of the closet like that. "Yeah, those mops are vicious."

"Weirdo."

* * *

Paulina stared at the doors that led into the inside of the school. Anxiety was bubbling in her stomach, and she couldn't take it. Any time now, Star and Danny might come barging into the lunch area and ruin the entire plan. She could only hope that Star kept him occupied long enough.

Fixing her hair without even need to look in a mirror, she collected her wits and walked over to the table where Sam and Tucker were sitting. They noticed her immediately, and looked at each other with awkward glances.

"Hey Tucker. Hey Goth girl," she greeted with a wave.

"It's Sam."

"Same thing."

Sam was tapping her fingers on the table, a hand under her chin as she glared up at Paulina. Tucker just looked scared as he stared down at his Sloppy Joe that he suddenly didn't feel like eating anymore.

"I just wanted to let you guys know that Danny is waiting for you in the Gym, he didn't want to come get you himself so he told me to."

"That doesn't sound like him. Why is he in the Gym?" asked Sam.

"Oh, something about extra credit for P.E. You guys better get going, lunch is almost over."

With that, she flipped her hair over her shoulder and walked back to her table. She wasn't sure if they fell for it or not, but when she looked over and noticed both teens were walking in the direction of the Gym, she felt relieved and grateful. Now Dash just had to do his part.

"I didn't know Testlaff gave out extra credit," commented Tucker.

"She doesn't, but we don't know where Danny is so we have no choice but to trust her."

Tucker sighed and crossed his arms over his chest.

"What if this is all a huge prank? And they have Danny tied up somewhere and are giving him makeovers and pedicures and god forbid, gossiping? What if we're next?"

Sam rolled her eyes and slapped him on the back of his head.

"Be real, Tuck. These are teenage girls we're talking about, not evil masterminds."

Tucker suppressed a shudder as he opened the doors to the Gym. Sneakers squeaked on the wooden floor as two bulky figures danced around each other, a ball between them.

"Dash and Kwan?" Sam raised an eyebrow. That's when the two figures noticed them and turned around, one even waved. The ball rolled to the side, momentarily forgotten.

"Are you guys looking for Danny?" Kwan asked from the other side of the Gym.

Sam and Tucker exchanged looks before cautiously walking closer to the other two so that they wouldn't have to scream across the room.

"Yeah, know where he is?"

"He said that by the time you guys got here school would be over, so he left. He told me to remind you guys not to go look for him, since he wants to hang with Paulina and the girlies. Kinda rude on Fenturd's part, if you ask me" answered Dash as he picked up the basketball from the floor, tossing it over to Sam who caught it with ease. "Wanna play?"

Sam wasn't buying it; she put the ball under one arm and glared at Dash.

"What are you guys trying to do?"

"Hey," Kwan put his hands up, palms facing outward in a defensive manner. "We're not trying to do anything but play ball."

"Yeah, right." She rolled her eyes and threw the basketball back at Dash. Sam grabbed Tucker's wrist and rushed them both out of the Gym as quick as possible.

"There's no way Danny would hang out with Paulina! I mean, he probably would have a few months ago, but he's changed," she nodded to herself as she walked, her grasp hard on Tucker's wrist.

"Whoa, calm down Sam. Breaking my hand isn't going to fix anything."

Sam stopped and glared at Tucker, letting go of his wrist and instead fisting her hands by her side.

"Ventilate, in out, in out," he used hand motions that just aggravated Sam even more.

"You're so annoying sometimes, Tuck." she rolled her eyes and started walking again, when she stopped right in her tracks and caused Tucker to bump into her abruptly.

Up on the steps that lead into the school, Danny was walking down with Star by his side.

"No... way."

"Huh?" asked Tuck, still oblivious to what Sam was staring at.

"Come on," she said angrily, grabbing Tucker's wrist.

"Awh man, not this again," Tucker sighed as he was dragged once again in the opposite direction.

Busting open the doors to the Gym, she pointed a finger at Dash and Kwan.

"You two! If I win against you Neanderthals at basketball, will you tell me what you've done to Danny?"

"We haven't done anything to him," answered Dash "but maybe, _if _you beat us."

"Bring it."

Times like these, Tucker really hated his life.

* * *

Paulina was so sure she was dead. She had seen Tucker and Sam walk out of the Gym the same time Danny and Star walked of the school, and her heart had jumped into her throat. Then the Goth girl grabbed her friend's and started walking the opposite way. It felt like ten tons had been lifted off her shoulders. Could someone really be so stupid?

"Oh, hey, Paulina," Danny said awkwardly as he and Star stopped at her table.

"Danny had just been telling me this really funny story about how his parents almost caused this entire pet cemetery to come alive," she said, clutching her stomach and almost going into another fit of laughter.

"They had dead dogs and hamsters following them around for weeks," said Danny, shaking his head. "Anyway, have you seen Sam and Tucker?"

"Uh, yeah, that's gross," Paulina glared at Star, waiting for her to stop giggling before she could continue.

"They went to go play basketball with Dash and Kwan. Apparently, they didn't think you were good enough in the athletic department to play with," she smiled with fake sympathy and patted the spot next to her. "You're welcome to sit with me though."

Danny shook his head, and instead sat down across from her.

"They hate Dash, _and _basketball. Are you sure that's what they said?"

"Positive," she nodded. "People change who they are all the time though. Being popular and all, I know what it's like to be abandoned by those you used to call friends," she sighed dramatically, putting her hair to one side over her shoulder.

"Such a shame," agreed Star, nodding sadly.

"Then if I checked the Gym, they'd be there?"

"Mhm," nodded Paulina. "You can go like, right now, if you want. I don't care. I just wanted to let you know you're invited to my party this Saturday."

Paulina got up from the table to go to class. Star followed behind her, as expected. They hadn't taken more than three steps when Danny started talking again.

"Paulina?"

"What now?" asked Paulina, turning around to face him.

"Why are you being so nice to me?"

"Like I said, people change. See you on Saturday."

* * *

Lancer tapped his pen impatiently against the stack of tests that sat in front of him. He was occupied with thinking of ways to improve period one's acting skills in a matter of weeks. Which, in his opinion, was impossible. That didn't mean he wouldn't try though.

"Maybe I should have them write papers on one of their favorite actors? No, that won't do... My favorite actor? Won't do either."

He rubbed his temples in aggravation. Not only would he have to find a way to turn first period into amazingly believable actors, but also choose a plot the day after. Which could practically make or break the play. Let's not forget the fact that he had the responsibility of editing the entire play script with little help from the other teachers. He sighed; sometimes the students didn't know how easy they had it.

Although Lancer loved everything having to do with the arts, he was an _English _teacher. He just wasn't equipped for teaching Drama. Picking up a piece of paper he had figured was a note and confiscated from a student earlier that day, he uncrumpled it and figured divulging himself in his student's problems instead of his own wouldn't be so bad.

Only, to his disappointment, it was someone's biology assignment. It highlighted how Feral Children usually acted like their adoptive animal parents because children learn to mimic their surroundings and the creatures they live with, and why, etc. He quickly got bored and crumpled it back up.

Now, bored again, he stared at the stack of papers in front of him.

"I really should get to grading..."

Suddenly struck with an idea, he picked the report back up and re-read a line.

_"Often when influenced by a single group enough, humans tend to adopt the actions and characteristics of that group in order to fit in. Since we, as a species, crave acceptance..."_

"That's it!" he exclaimed, throwing the paper over his shoulder. "I'll just make them observe Phantom fight ghosts. The dialogue, hand gestures, fighting tactics, and so on! Only obstacle is the safety factor... let's not forget how elusive Danny Phantom is. Ah, well, I'll figure that out later."

* * *

**In case you're confused with what the plan exactly was, Danny now thinks Sam and Tucker abandoned him and Sam and Tucker think vice versa. Just clearing that up for anyone before hand.**

**P.S. I seriously respect people who can write at a normal pace and not jump right into the action! It's harder than it looks.**


	5. Chapter 5

**That was quick, huh? This is only the first part of this chapter, so I should have the second part up in 3-4 days. By the way, I edited some of the earlier chapters to make things flow better. I also added some more dialogue and descriptions, but it's not necessary to read because no major plot changes have been made.**

Mr. Lancer sighed, cleaning off the board as he waited for second period to file in. First period had been rather... uneventful. He had given them their practice skits to memorize over the weekend, then had told them to write about their favorite play since he couldn't have them doing nothing the rest of the period. Most had turned in some gibberish about Romeo and Juliet. Not only was that completely unoriginal, but half didn't even know what they were talking about!

"'Romeo and Juliet killed their parents so they could run away together but God smited them both and then they died. The Friar became out raged at Romeo and Juliet's death, so to make up for his guilt, he had an affair and ran away to Mexico with Juliet's Nanny. God smited them too.'" Lancer recited to himself as he recalled a certain essay he had read.

Moving on to another section of the board, he shook his head in disappointment. He was truly, deeply worried for this generation.

The bell rang, signaling the start of second period. He turned around to greet his students, clapping his hands together to get rid of the chalk he had accumulated. A few students who had front row seats coughed as the chalk dust floated into the atmosphere. Lancer paid no attention to his wheezing students and instead waited for everyone to quiet down before he could speak.

"In case you had forgotten, your plots are due today," the few who hadn't done the assignment groaned because they had either forgot to, weren't able to (lack of creative juices), or simply were too lazy to.

"_But_," continued Lancer "You will still be required to come up here and give at least some sort of story idea, because it wouldn't be fair to your fellow classmates if you don't. Clear?"

With a nod, he sat in his desk and waited for the first person to come up and start. It just so happened to be a slacker who very rarely showed up to class. His greasy black hair hung in his face, and he sluggishly walked up to the front of the room with his hands in his pockets.

"Okay, so like, Phantom is fighting this ghost, right? And they're all, pew pew! And Phantom is all "Oh hell naw!" and he like, kills the ghost? Is that right, Lancer? Ghosts can die, right? That's so rad. Okay so then Phantom is all-"

Lancer sighed, already disappointed with where this was going.

"You can like, so totally like, go back to your seat Mr. Gutirrez," Lancer mocked. He wasn't able to see the boy's expression from all the hair in his face but he assumed it was probably a mixture of apathy and hurt. He slowly walked back to his seat, not once picking up his feet.

The next person to come up was a sickly thin nerdy looking kid with flare jeans that went past his belly button. His plaid shirt was buttoned all the way, and he had trouble keeping his large glasses up. He fumbled with his paper as he tried to uncrumple it. His hands shook terribly, and he had to stop periodically to wipe sweat off his brow and or adjust his glasses.

"Breathe, Marvin." coaxed Lancer, not really knowing what else to say.

"P-Phantom kidnaps the-the Princess M-Margaret and takes her to the Gh-ost Z-Zone 'cause her human prince abuses her. Th-Then they humans raid the Ghost Zone to t-t-try and take her b-back but Phantom defeats them all s-single handedly and s-saves the princess f-from the evil-evil p-prince. The end!"

The class room was quiet for the longest time before Lancer found the right words to say.

"Did you write that, Mr. Shelly?"

Marvin sniffed, looking down at the curly cursive writing on the paper. Honestly, he hadn't. But when Paulina, the most popular girl in school, had come up and talked to him personally (not to make fun of him, nonetheless!), he had jumped at the chance to be accepted by her.

He now realized how bad of a decision that was. This would be held over his head for years to come. He struggled internally between telling the truth and lying. Ultimately, his fear of the A-List won over his fear of being made fun of for three more years of his life.

"Yes, M-Mr. Lancer. I'll just be going to back to my seat now."

"You do that, Marvin... you do that."

Lancer sighed, shuffling papers on his desk as the awkward silence dragged on.

"Princess Margaret?" snickered one of the jocks form the back of the room, "Is that suppose to be a cover up name for you, Marvin?"

"Shut up!"

"Or else what, Princess Margaret?" he sneered, laughing with the rest of the class. "Gonna call Phantom on me?"

Lancer stepped in and told everyone to quiet and reminded the next person to go up, which happened to be Valerie Gray.

She took a deep breathe, gathering her confidence as she stood in front of her classmates.

Now or never, Valerie, she encouraged herself.

"Phantom is a ghost working for a sector of the Ghost Zone called the Revolutionaries. The Revolutionaries are the most powerful gang of ghosts in existence, because they don't run solely on obsession and anger. They strategically plan out their attacks, which most ghosts rarely do. The combination of planning, intelligence and power allows them to travel from dimension to dimension, conquering new worlds. Phantom's personally assigned world is Earth, the world of the living. He works by gaining our trust, slyly working his way into our hearts. The only one to know of his evil nature and The Revolutionaries is The Red Huntress, who has made it her life's goal to stop them at all costs. When the people of Earth don't believe that Phantom is secretly evil, she resorts to combining forces with survivors of different worlds to bring the downfall of Phantom, and ultimately, The Revolutionaries."

She looked at Lancer for his opinion. He sat with a hand propping up his chin, a small smile forming on his lips as he stared at Valerie.

"That was magnificent, Gray. The combination between real world and fictional characters and settings was outstanding. I have to admit that was the most original plot I've heard all day, and I'm impressed. Please take a seat."

Valerie smiled, bowing to the class before taking her seat. That had made her day, and she knew without a doubt her plot would be chosen if things continued like this. One by one, students went up and presented their ideas. Most were either unoriginal, cliche, or just plain stupid.

Lancer sighed, checking off each student. Figuring he was done, he put away his clipboard and looked up at the students that were sitting quietly, awaiting his decision. To his dismay though, he had apparently missed a student. He stood in the very last seat, with curly blonde hair that was slicked back. He sat with perfect posture, wearing a white polo shirt with a blue argyle vest over it, matched off with khaki pants and oxfords.

"Have you been here the entire time?" he asked, staring with an eyebrow raised incredulously at the seemingly random new student.

"Of course, Mr. Lancer."

His voice sounded calm and so confident, Lancer couldn't help but believe it. Surely, he couldn't be lying as none of the other students had said anything.

"What is your name then? It seems to have escaped me," he scratched his head in confusion. He had made sure at the beginning of the year to memorize each and every single one of his student's names. He had never failed that simple task, not once.

"Jeremy. Jeremy Hall."

"Alright then Jeremy, get up here so we can finish this up."

Jeremy got out of his seat and walked towards the front of the classroom. Every single head trailed his path as he walked, not being able to take their eyes off him. There was something not quite right about this boy. Every person knew that there had never been a Jeremy Hall in that class before, yet they felt like they had known this boy the entire year. Fake memories of funny commentaries and awkward incidences in the cafeteria filled their brains, making it difficult to decide which ones were real and which were fake. Eventually, they all just accepted the fact that "Jeremy" had been there the entire time. Yet, no one voiced that nagging thought in the back of their mind that Jeremy was a trick.

The closer Jeremy got to Lancer's desk, the more the old teacher felt like he was looking_ through_ him. Almost as if the boy was a silhouette with a more solid figure standing behind him. As soon as the image appeared though, it vanished and left a completely solid Jeremy Hall just as he had been before.

"Well..." he began, choosing his words carefully. "My idea is quite simple, really. Have any of you ever stopped to ponder what Phantom was like before he died? How did he live, who was he friends with, how did he die? A play like that, in my opinion, would be a huge success as it would give those who know Phantom a deeper insight into his life-and after life. They'll be given a chance to know Phantom not as the hero who protects Amity Park, but as the harmless teenager who got hit by a reckless driver or _accidently electrocuted himself_."

For some reason, Jeremy's final words had struck a chord with Lancer. He liked this play idea, but he didn't know why. It was almost as if another voice, one that wasn't his own, was whispering in his mind to pick it.

"Then we have the question of why he decided to protect Amity, and what challenges does he face everyday? I'm sure your audience would be much more interested in Phantom himself than some story about the Red Huntress going off on a journey with aliens."

Valerie glared at him from her seat, really not liking this boy. Who did he think he was? Waltzing up there and insulting her plot like that. Phantom was a menace, maybe not in the way she had put in her story, but a menace nonetheless.

"I have to agree, a story about Phantom before death and his transition into becoming Amity Park's hero would make us feel much more close to the enigma on a personal level. Seems you are tied with Ms. Gray. Both your plots are remarkable, yet about entirely different things. You will know my decision tomorrow. You have permission to talk the remaining ten minutes of class."

Taking out a piece of paper, he decided to write down the pros and cons of each play. On one side, if he picked Valerie's play, the audience would constantly be on the edge of their seat. Of course, that would require a larger number of props and equipment. Secondly, the play wouldn't be centered around Phantom, but rather the Huntress. One thing that also really bothered him was the fact that Phantom was being portrayed as a villain rather than the hero that he was.

Lancer had told himself early on that he wouldn't let little details like that bother him. For some reason though, he didn't feel it was fair to Phantom that after all he had done for the town. He was a strong Phantom supporter, and he and everyone else knew Valerie was anti-Phantom.

Then again, on Jeremy's side, the play might get a little boring at times. A teenager's life isn't always action packed. If the script was written just right though, it would be entertaining. It certainly wouldn't be an edge-of-your-seat adventure (except for the ghost fighting scenes), but it would be enough to be a success.

Lancer sighed, putting his pencil down and rubbing his temples. This was going to be harder than he thought.

"By the way, is it just me, or does Fenton look a lot like Phantom?"

He shivered as the temperature dropped a few degrees. Looking around bewildered, he couldn't find the source of the voice. It felt like it had come within his head, but it had tickled his ear as if someone was whispering in it! Before he could question any of the students, the bell rang and the students filed out. He failed to notice Jeremy wasn't part of that crowd.

* * *

"It went perfect, just as planned. The seed has been planted, it will now either flourish, or it will die. The result depends on that oaf of a teacher's willingness to go against the rules and give Fenton the lead part."

"The rules?" asked Ember, cocking her head to the side. She had not known about any rules, or else she would have planned things out better!

"Yes. Apparently, it will be picked at random and you cannot swamp, trade, quit, or ask for exchanges," he said dully, rolling his eyes.

"Ah, than you can rig it so that Dipstick is picked as Phantom, right? Then use whatever power-magic-voodoo thing to make sure the play becomes a hit."

Ember sighed. She was taking a really big risk here, trusting this ghost. She had never taken to such a tactic to destroying Phantom before because she simply didn't believe that he would be the type to let fame distract him from his ghoals. She had begun to have surfacing worries that maybe he'd turn down the offer of fame and continue to protect Amity Park. If that were to happen, she'd be exiled from the Ghost Zone for giving everyone false hope. Where would she go then? No, no this had to work. It had to.

"Relax," he said, placing a hand on her shoulder as if reading her thoughts. "Of course I can always rig it. And it's not the play you should be worried about, but the movie. The play will simply set up the base, but he cannot achieve world wide fame from simply staring in a play. Try to relax and not doubt me, I will excite that part of him that wishes for people to know his name, and praise him. It exists in even the most modest and noble. Have I not said that already?"

Ember nodded, having no choice but to trust the ghost in front of her.

**So which do you think Lancer should choose? Valerie's or Jeremy's?**


	6. Chapter 6

**I PROMISE I haven't forgotten about this story. I had to get my computer fixed and I just got it back, not to mention all the schoolwork this year. I didn't notice chap 6 was removed until I looked at the comments, so here's a reupload for those who haven't read it. For those of you who have, I'll type up a new** **chapter as soon as I can remember where I was going with the plot (might take a while, might not. i'll try and be quick though). Just know that I'm not dead yet!**

Sighing, Danny put his head down on the table. He had forgotten how boring school could be. Where was Skulker? Ember? Technus? The _Box Ghost_? Fighting them was ten times more entertaining than listening to his history teacher droll on and on about the past. He'd make sure to thank them and apologize for taking them for granted when they came back. Scratch that, _if _they came back.

Nevermind the fact that class was utterly snore inducing, he had nothing to occupy his mind and make him forget the fact that his only two confidants, besides Jazz, whom he'd trust his life with, were treating him like garbage! Ever since the start of school, the only time they'd glance at him was to give him dirty looks. They wouldn't even tell him what he'd done wrong. A part of Danny felt like _they _should be the one apologizing, that _they _should be fearing what they'd done wrong, that he should be the one ignoring them and giving them nasty looks!

They were the ones who had ditched him at lunch yesterday to hang out with Dash and Kwan. Which, for the life of him, he couldn't understand. There were plenty of other people at school they could spend time with instead of him. Besides that, wasn't the A-list like an exclusive club only? They wouldn't just willingly hang out with a bunch of "losers" like it's no big deal.

_Maybe Sam and Tuck are just bored of me_, Danny mentally sighed. He lifted his head to take the papers the person in front of him was passing back before putting his head back down.

_They probably only stuck around for so long because of my ghost powers. Now that the ghosts are gone, I have nothing to offer them. I'm just boring ol' Fenton. _He burried his head deeper into his arms, the full magnitude of his situation finally dawning on him. His two best friends were a complete joke!

His brain began weaving parts and pieces of his past together to fit the image that Tucker and Sam had just used him for excitement that only a superhero could provide. Would you turn down being friends with a superhero? No matter how boring and normal and average they were when they didn't have their mask on, you'd stick around for the adventure and mystery they provided when they _did _have it on.

_"Stop being like everyone else Danny, you're better than that! You're amazing __**because **__you're half-ghost."_

Danny grit his teeth at the memory. Sam had said that a few months when he had began complaining about the responsibility that came with being a hero. At the time, he had taken it as a good thing. She didn't think of him as a freak for being half-dead. Of course she wouldn't think of him as a freak! She herself strived to be the complete opposite of anything normal. She completely despised normal, and if it wasn't for his powers, _he _would be normal. Therefor normal did not live up to her standards.

He felt his heart jump into his throat.

_So it had all been a lie, a trick? And I fell for it without a second tought... _

He raised his hand, cutting the teacher off half way through her lesson. Not saying a single word, for fear he would break down crying in the middle of class, he pointed towards the bathroom pass. With a nod, she handed him the pass and he grabbed his backpack and walked out of class.

"I can't believe them," he whispered through gritted teeth once he was out of the classroom. Madness was starting to swallow his heart as he came to the conclusion that he had been _played _by two of the people he loved most.

"What am I to them? A toy? Something that can just entertain them until they get _bored _and decide to throw me away?"

Pushing open the door to the boy's bathroom, he removed his binder and flipped it open onto one of the sinks.

Going through all the papers, he picked out all the notes he and Sam had passed in class and threw them away. Grinding his teeth together to keep from crying, he got rid of every single memory he had Sam had shared on paper.

He decided that as soon as he got home, he'd throw away every picture and souvenir he had of the two as well. He was going to erase them from his life and move on like nothing had ever happened.

Stumbling on a piece of paper he didn't recognize, he uncrumpled it and realized it had been the plot he had stolen from Paulina that one day. He smiled, remembering how angry she had been.

"She's been so nice to me lately, maybe I should give her a chance..." folding the piece of paper up, he stuck it into his back pocket. "I mean, maybe if she gets to know me, she'll like me for me and not for my Phantom side. I just have to be extra careful to make sure she doesn't find out."

He sighed, shutting his binder ruffly and shoving it back into his backpack. Slingly it over his shoulder, he quickly looked into the mirror. He hadn't been crying, but his eyes were red and puffy with what _would _have been tears had he allowed them to be. Briefly splashing water of his face, he grabbed the pass and went back to class.

* * *

Sam jumped at feeling the phone in her back pocket vibrate suddenly. She and Tucker were in third period history taking notes and everything had been rather peaceful. She sighed, taking out the phone and making sure the teacher wasn't looking.

_think we were 2 harsh on him? _

Sam glared at her phone. She had forgotten about Danny up until then. Leave it to Tucker to bring him back up.

_I sit right next to you, why are you texting me? By the way, it's too, not 2! _

Tucker returned her sigh. Leave it to _Sam _to be a grammar freak.

_stop ignoring the subject! danny is our bff. we should let him xplain himself._

_What is there to explain, Tuck? _she paused, pondering over what to say next. _I mean, Dash and Kwan won the basketball game. No surprise there, but they even said themselves that the only reason they had stopped bullying him was because of __**Paulina**__! They're giving him a chance because of Paulina, and we should let him take it._

She pressed the 'send' button and stuffed the phone angrily back into her pocket. Figuring it'd take him a minute or two to write back, she began taking notes...

_Buzz buzz._

She put her pencil down again. Turned so she could glare at Tucker then took out her phone. He shrugged innocently.

_chill, sam! i wasn't asking for an essay. but wait, wat ur saying is that if dash __**did **__want danny to be part of the populars, then there'd be some sort of higher plot involved? wheres the logic?_

_Well... _started Sam _I mean, they're not just going to wake up one day and think 'Hey, Danny Fenton is really cool and we want him to hang out with us because we're really cool too!'. _Sam paused again, drumming her finger tips on her desk as she tried to find a way to put her thoughts into words. _If that were the case, there'd probably be something more to this, but there's not. Dash and Kwan are just giving Danny a chance. Or Danny told Paulina his secret, which I doubt. _

When Tucker received the text, his eyes widened slightly. Of course, this all made sense!

_uhmm, sammy, i'm about to tell you something and i'm just going to remind you to not make a scene in the middle of class, okay? a few days ago, paulina came into fifth period and asked to see danny afterschool. she didnt say why or anything, but i have a feeling i know what happened..._

Sam gasped, jumping in her seat slightly despite Tucker's warning to not make a scene. Luckily, the class hadn't paid much attention.

_You think Paulina knows his secret? And Dash and Kwan don't? That's why she's telling them to be nice to him, isn't it? Do you think Paulina figured it out or Danny told her? _

Not bothering to take his phone out, Tucker put a hand on Sam's desk, leaned in and whispered.

"I don't know anything, Sam. If we want to find out though, we have to talk to Paulina."

"Why not Danny?"

"Because if Paulina found out on her own, then she probably has Danny tied around her little finger and could blurt out his secret to anyone anytime she wants. Talking to her is more reliable and safe."

"What if Danny told her?"

"Then... I don't know, Sam. If Danny told her then that changes everything. I always thought we were the only ones he could trust with his secret, I doubt he'd go blurting it out to Paulina of all people."

Taking his hand off Sam's desk, Tucker leaned back in his seat and began putting away his things as the end of class neared.

"Hormonal teenage boys get desperate sometimes Tuck, don't forget that."

* * *

Fourth period ended, and soon Tucker found himself walking to fifth. He nervously played with the straps of his backpack. He had fifth period with Danny and Valerie. He really didn't want any confrontation with them. Maybe they'd just ignore him.

He sighed in relief when he walked in and was greeted by the sight of Valerie and Danny chatting happily. They probably wouldn't even notice him walk in. He rubbed his sweaty palm against his jeans and walked steadily to his desk behind danny. Gulping in nothing but air, he glared at the floor and tried to advert eye contact with either of them.

Why was he so nervous? It's not like Danny was mad at him. He wouldn't go ghost and pounce on him in the middle of class, so _why _was he so nervous?

Setting his backpack down by his desk, he took his seat and took out his PDA. He tried to ignore the sudden lack of conversation. He tried to ignore Danny shifting in his seat uncomfortably. He tried to ignore Valerie laughing awkwardly and asking what had gotten into Danny. He tried to, but he just _couldn't_.

"What's your problem?" he asked, looking up from his PDA.

"What? Did I say something?" asked Danny innocently.

"No, it's what you _didn't_ say. Why'd you stop talking to Val? Was it something you didn't want me hearing?"

"I didn't know I wasn't allowed to end conversations, Tuck," he said cooly, in a way that aggravated Tucker and made him feel like he wasn't worth Danny's time.

"Chill, Tucker," said Valerie, butting into the conversation. "We were just talking about who he was gonna rehearse first period's practice skit with. I was just offering to help him out, and he said he already had someone."

Danny nodded, propping his head on his hand.

"You done freaking out now? Jeez, you sounded like a paranoid stalker or something."

Tucker grinded his teeth together to keep from lashing out at Danny. This wasn't like his "best friend" _at all_, he almost seemed like a mini-Vlad.

"What's your problem, Danny?" he asked, squinting his eyes slightly as if that would allow him to see past Danny's facade, or lack thereof. Leaning in closer so that Valerie couldn't hear his next words, he asked "Paulina's not here, so if she's threatoning you with your secret, you can go ahead and tell me."

Danny growled deeply in his throat, pushing Tucker back harder than he had intended to. Tucker fell with a _thump _onto the floor beside his desk, a shocked expression on his face.

"What's my problem?" asked Danny, standing up from his desk. "My problem is that I'm surrounded by unloyal pricks that think they know everything about me! Even if I have told her my secret, it's none of your business because you're no longer part of my life. You stopped being part of my life this morning when you _wouldn't even look at me _and you wonder why I'm so _pissed_? Gee, Tucker. I wonder, what's my problem! No, what's yours?"

Tucker gaped like a fish out of water. Was this Danny? Was this truly Danny, and had he heard what he had heard him say? Did he say he was no longer part of his life?

The class had gone completely silent now, even the teacher was staring at them, unsure of what to do. Danny regreted ever lashing out at Tucker. He was just so _angry_. Angry at himself for not being good enough for anyone, angry at Sam and Tucker for abandoning him so suddenly, angry at Paulina for coming into his life at such a confusing time, angry at the Ghost Zone for abandoning him too, angry at his life because he could never have a sense of normalcy or peace. He was just _angry _and he had unleashed his angry wrongly on Tucker. And yet, despite all these confusing and conflicting thoughts, he felt Tucker still deserved everything he had said to him.

"... what secret?" asked Valerie, barely above a whisper.

_Oh no_.

"Nothing. I-I don't know what Tucker is talking about."

Danny leaned down and offered a hand to Tucker, which he reluctantly took.

"Look, Tucker, I don't want any hard feelings between us. I get that I'm just entertainment to you, I get it. I apologize for lashing out at you back there, too. Can we just forget all this? I mean, if that's okay with you." whispered Danny to Tucker once class had started and everything was relatively back to normal. Valerie had become dangerously silent, and Danny suspected she was still thinking about his and Tucker's little slip about a certain secret.

"Y-yeah, sure, dude. Man. Whatever you say."

Danny turned around and the rest of the period passed in relative silence. Except, in Tucker's head. He was going through their conversation and trying to find anything Danny might have accidently let slip. Most of what he had said didn't make much sense anyway.

**You stopped being part of my life this morning when you **_**wouldn't even look at me...**_

_So he's mad about this morning_, thought Tucker trying to analyze everything one at a time. _We were mad at him for ditching us at lunch to hang with Paulina. Paulina either does, or does not know his secret. If she found out, chances are she's blackmailing him into hanging out with her. If he told her, chances are he did so because he knew she wouldn't turn down the chance to hang out with Danny Phantom. That's really, really shallow, Danny. Like, I mean, you don't see spiderman going around telling every cute chick he sees that he's spiderman! Whatever, I'm getting off track._

**My problem is that I'm surrounded by unloyal pricks...**

Tucker mentally scoffed. _The only one being "unloyal" is you, Dandan. This is so stupid! I feel like a preschooler or something. Why can't we all just get along?_

**I get that I'm just entertainment to you, I get it. **

_What did he mean by that? Ugh, has Danny gone crazy? I'm seriously getting nowhere at all. Whatever. I give up. Tucker Foley is officially out of the building. I am out!_

"Tucker? Tucker, are you there?"

"Huh, wha-?"

Tucker turned to face Valerie, who was waving a hand in front of his face.

"Good to have you back. I was just asking if you heard what first period's new assignment is."

"Uhh, skit or something, right?"

"That, and also first period is going to become Phantom's new stalkers. I haven't seen him in a while though, wonder how that's gonna work out."

"That...harsh," said Tucker, looking at Danny who was asleep on his desk out of the corner of his eye.

Valerie nodded and assumed Tucker was talking about first period.

"Speaking of the play, what's the plot?"

"Don't know," shrugged Valerie. "Either mine or some Jeremy dude's. Could have sworn I never saw him around school before that day though."

Without warning, Danny suddenly jumped in his seat. He raised his hand into the air and asked to be excused.

* * *

Danny skidded to a stop in the empty hallway. He had practically jumped out of his seat when he felt his ghost sense go off, and then ran like the wind when the teacher had excused him. His dramatic confrontation with Tucker had been forgotten for the time being, at least.

Going ghost, he went intangible and flew out of the school. His head turned back and forth in search of the specter. He looked almost like a frightened rooster.

"Right here, ghost child."

Danny spun around to face the deep, burly voice's owner. A small smile formed its way onto his lips when he realized who it was.

"Long time no see, huh Skulker? Where've you been?"

"If I wasn't mistaken, welp, I'd say it almost sounds like you've missed me."

"How could I not?" he asked with a smirk, charging an ectoblast in his palm. He sped towards Skulker at lightning speed, cradling his charged hand in front of him like a spring just ready to be let go. When he got an inch or so close to Skulker, though, something strange and rather frightening happened.

Skulker shimmered out of existance and in his place was a tall, lanky man with dark hair and dark eyes. He wore a tuxedo and had his clasped behind his back. His eyes were creased in consentration, and heavy crow's feet lined the corners of his eyes. His nose was his most prominant feature, large and curved. The air around him seemed to glisten, as if the places where his ghostly aura seemed to touch were not held under control by the Laws of Physics, but rather by him.

Danny skidded to a stop just inches away from him. When he looked at Skulker again though, the regular Skulker was back. No tall, lanky man. No shimmering, bending atmosphere. Just Skulker.

"What's the matter, Phantom?" laughed Skulker, before fading out of existance.

_No_, Danny shaked his head, trying to come to terms with what he had seen. _He didn't fade out, he was absorbed by the air around him... sucked into some sort of vacuum, and he had __**wanted **__me to see it. Add this to the list of weird things going on this week._


	7. Author's Note

Sad to say that it's come to this, but this story is getting discontinued. I really tried to not let the flame die but it did. So instead of keeping you guys wondering, just thought I'd let you know that this won't be updated anymore.

I won't delete it in case I change my mind some time in the future or someone wants to read what little there is of it. **If **I decide to continue it, I'd probably rewrite it from scratch (looking back, my writing was atrocious). Sorry guys! I know how much it sucks for a story to get cut off halfway through (or in this case before it really even starts) so I want to apologize for that.

If you want to adopt it, message me. If you want a basic summary of what I had planned, message me. Again, really sorry!


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